Loyalty Lost
by pigmonkey
Summary: Taylor knows what his boss does to women, knows but can't tell, can't interfere. Starts after Leila breaks into Ana's apartment and goes AU from there. Slow burn fic.
1. Chapter 1

As I lift her up into my arms, I notice how light she is. If she's an ounce over 100 pounds, I'll eat my hat. She's nearly catatonic in my arms, as we carefully descend the stairs, making our way to safety. I can't say that I blame her. She's been through so much the past few weeks; she's barely had a chance to stop and catch her breath.

Four weeks. It's only been four weeks since she was a bright-eyed college student, at the crux of adulthood. She was so innocent then, so carefree, so excited for what the world might bring that she exuded enthusiasm from every pore. I watched, from my mandated 20 yards, making sure that no harm came to the man that would be her ultimate downfall.

Now, I glance down at her waif-like form. Her cheeks are hollow, her once bright eyes seem to have dulled. She's aged so much in these past four weeks. I huddle her closer, hoping that she can absorb some of my warmth. She's shivering uncontrollably and clutching my black t-shirt, as though it's a life-line. I feel my stomach churn in revulsion at the lost child expression that has recently been a permanent fixture on her face.

When we make it to the final landing of the stairs, I set her on her feet, careful to make sure that she's able to support her own weight, before releasing her completely. She looks as though a stiff breeze could knock her over.

Her blonde friend, Ethan, I think his name is, rushes over to her side to lend her support. She still looks unsteady, dazed, and lost.

"What the fuck is going on?" The boy demands. He's so visibly upset at the state of his friend that I think he might actually take a swing at me, were he confident in Ana's ability to stand on her own. However, she still weaving back and forth, staring into space.

"There was a security breach. Mr. Grey requested that Ana be removed from the scene, and taken to safety." It's a lame explanation, one that does nothing to answer the heart of his question: what has happened to his friend.

"Fuck you, there was a security breach. A goddamn security breach is what happens when you accidentally leave the door unlocked and some dude wanders into your house, looking to score some weed. Whatever the hell this is…" he waves his unoccupied arm feebly towards Ana's weakened state "It's sure a hell of a lot more than _just_ a security breach." His voice trails off at the end of his speech, as he turns more fully towards the human shell in his arms.

"Ana?"

Nothing.

"Anny, honey? I need you to look at me. Can you do that? I need you to focus on me now."

Her eyes slowly drift away towards his face, not quite focused, still listlessly staring through her surroundings, but at least partially acknowledging the voices of the people around her.

"Good girl, Ana. Know, I need you to tell me if you're hurt. Do you need a doctor, honey? Do you need me to call the police?"

At the mention of the police, she snaps out of her daze. Her eyes widen in fear, and her posture grows more rigid.

"NO. No police. He… He said that we shouldn't call them."

"Fuck that, Ana. You just came down the stairs, nearly comatose, and even fucking Brutor over there said there was a 'security breach'. You know what people do when there's a security breach? They call the goddamn cops!"

As Ethan grows more and more belligerent, his gestures become more exaggerated. His arms are waving in an erratic pattern, and the wild motions make Ana flinch and cower slightly back towards the wall.

"That's enough," I assert, stepping between them. I reach my hand out and place it in front of him, to stop him from coming closer to her, and frightening her more.

"She's been through enough. She doesn't need to be yelled at, and she's correct, Mr. Gray will not authorize police interference. Now, Mr. Gray has charged me with removing Ms. Steele from harm's way, and standing in this entry way is not safe."

Once I see that Ethan has calmed himself marginally, I turn back to face Ana.

"Now, Ms. Steele, where would you like to go? Mr. Gray wants you away from danger, and I want to take you somewhere that you feel safe, and that you'll feel comfortable."

"I need a drink. This has all been too much." With that, she turns on her heel and marches out the door, without looking back. Ethan and I share a startled glance at her sudden decisiveness, and hurry outside after her.

Once outside I try to capture her elbow, to guide her down the road to where the security vehicle is parked, but she jerks her arm out of my grasp and continues straight across the road. She doesn't stop to check for traffic, just strides purposefully across the street, a car screeching to a halt to avoid her.

"Ms. Steele, please. This isn't what I meant, when I asked you where you wanted to go." I shout out to her, as Ethan and I dash after her, and I see her destination. A hole in the wall bar, with a crooked sign above the door that looks like it might have once read _Vinnie's_.

"What I meant was that I could take you back to Escala, or to a hotel, or a friend's house. Somewhere safe. Not some dive bar right across the way."

We've almost caught up to her, but she's nearly to her destination. "Don't come if you don't want to, but I told you, I need a drink." She shouts over her shoulder as she grasps the door handle.

The hinges make a god awful screech, as she forces her way inside. We enter just behind her.

Striding over to the bar, she slaps her hand down on the surface and orders a shot of tequila.

Ethan and I sit down on either side of her. I try to reason with her, to make her see that this is a bad idea, but she ignores me and downs a second shot. Ethan, however, seems to have abandoned his line of questions about what happened in the apartment, and has started working on his new goal, which is apparently to get hammered right along with her. Perfect.

* * *

2 hours and 7 rounds have passed. Mr. Gray still has not emerged from the apartment building. I desperately want to go back inside, to make sure that everything is okay, but I can't leave these two here. Mr. Gray gave me direct orders to protect what he considers his.

I glance over at his latest acquisition. She can't hold her liquor. A lot of that probably has to do with all of the weight that she has lost, since she met my employer. It happens to them all, over time, just not usually at this rapid of a pace.

She's leaning heavily on her equally inebriated friend, as she gives him the cliffsnotes version of the events of the day.

"Ana, Ana, Ana," he slurs. "You gotta get out of that bullshit," he waves his arm wildly in the general direction of the apartment. "He's no good for you Ana. We all see it."

This is the wrong approach. I know it instantly. I've seen this happen as well. As soon as their relationship is questioned by an outsider, they shut down.

And there it is.

"I love him, Ethan, and if you can't respect that, then you can't be a part of my life."

She stands up suddenly, wobbling a little as the alcohol hits her, and starts stumbling to the door, without paying the tab. Wearily I sigh, as Ethan shuffles after her, and I pull out my wallet and lay down enough bills on the bar to cover both of their drinks. I have to hurry to catch up to them, as Ana has picked up quite a brisk pace, in the opposite direction of the car, I might add. She's shouting accusatory things back at Ethan, as she storms away.

"You're just jealous. You've always had a thing for me, and you can't stand to see me happy."

Ethan stops chasing her after that.

"I'm sorry you think that little of me, Anny," he says, sounding surprisingly sober. "I won't bother you anymore. I just hope that you really are happy, and you're not just lying to yourself."

With that, he turns around and shuffles dejectedly back into the bar. Poor kid.

Now that she's no longer being chased, Ana seems to have realized that she doesn't have anywhere to go, and she starts walking back towards me, tripping a little, as the tequila compromises her already limited coordination.

"Take me home please, Taylor."

"Home, Ma'am?"

"Back to Escala."

"Of course."

I gently grasp her elbow, to help steady her on the walk back to the SUV. The further we walk, the more heavily she leans on me.

Once we make it to the car, I open passenger's side rear door, to let her in, but she stands steadfast on the sidewalk.

"No," she states, in a whiny tone. "I don't want to sit in the back, I hate sitting in the back, it makes me feel like a child."

"Of course, Ma'am."

I open the front door for her instead, and she awkwardly hoists herself into the seat. First facing the seat, then rolling around to face the front, once she realizes her mistake. I wait to make sure that she can buckle herself, before I close her in.

* * *

On the way back to Escala, she seems to drift off into an alcohol and stressed induced slumber, her head lolling back and forth on the seat, as the car turns. It's a peaceful drive back, and I slowly allow myself to unwind, and release some of the tension balled up in my shoulders.

I thought I was going to lose one or both of my charges today. I hate that part of my job is listening to Christian, even when I know he's wrong. He should have never been allowed into the apartment before me, and he should have let me do a sweep before Ana went in, but he insisted that there was no way that Leila knew where Ana lived. Stupid. She knew where Ana worked, it wasn't that much of a leap to assume that she knew where she lived as well. I tried to tell Christian, but he doesn't listen. To anyone.

Ana groans slightly in her sleep, and her brow furrows. Probably dreaming about today's events. Poor girl. I hate watching them waste away like this. I want to drive her as far away from Escala as I can, and shake her until she sees sense. I want to give her every single brochure that has ever been written on domestic abuse, and make her read them all until understands.

It's all there. He separates them from their families and friends. He withdraws from them emotionally to punish them. He manipulates them with sex and gifts and makes them think that it's love. I can't stand it.

But I do.

* * *

We pull up to Escala, and I reach over and gently touch her arm to wake her up.

"We're here, Ma'am," I inform her, as her eyes flutter open and she whips her head around in confusion.

"It's alright, Ma'am, you just nodded off on the way back to Escala. Everything's alright." It will never be alright with him.

She nods her head and starts slowly making her way out of the car. Her actions are still sluggish and uncertain from the booze.

I once again aid her in walking over to the elevator. Once inside she starts giggling, quietly at first, but with increasing hysteria.

"Elevators are magic, ya know," she states in a matter-of-fact town. Then she nearly knocks me off my feet as she launches herself at me, and suddenly her mouth is on mine.

Her lips are acrid with the taste of alcohol and the pressure that she's exerting is almost painful. I gently try and peel her away from my person.

"Ana, Ana, please, you don't want to do this. You've just had too much to drink."

She blinks and staggers back against the opposite wall of the elevator. Her eyes suddenly come back into focus, and she realizes that I'm not him. Then she surprises me again, and sinks to the ground, her chest heaving in huge wracking sobs.

I hurry over to her, try to pick her up off the ground, but she's not helping, and I can't lift her from this angle without possibly harming her. The elevator dings to announce our arrival to the top floor, and I jam my thumb into the emergency stop button, buying us some time before the elevator descends again. I sink down on to my haunches, getting down to her level, and try to reason with her, but she too hysterical.

"Ms. Steele, please, we're at our floor, we need to get off the elevator now."

She doesn't acknowledge me at all.

"Please, Ms. Steele, we can't stay here."

It takes several minutes of constant pleading to break through to her, and even then all she does is lift her arms to me, like a lost child, and consent to be lifted.

I pick her up, and carry her into the apartment, glad to have finally reached our destination, but she's still weeping uncontrollably, and I know I can't leave her like that, no matter how desperately I want to just disappear into my own suite and have this day finally be over.

Reluctantly, instead of placing her on the couch and leaving her to her misery, I carry her into Christian's bedroom, where I know she'll feel most comfortable. I lay her down on the bed, and she instantly curls into the fetal position, hugging a pillow to her chest and burying her face. Much to my relief, her tears seem to have quieted some. I know that she'll have a hell of a hangover tomorrow, so I go and get some Advil to leave on the counter, for when she wakes up. I know, just like last time, Christian won't want to provide her any medicine to help, he thinks that people that overindulge in alcohol deserve the headache. Needless suffering, in my opinion. Everyone makes mistakes. Mrs. Jones will leave her some orange juice in the morning, and I'll make sure there's medicine for her now.

When I return to place the pills down in on the nightstand, her sobs have finally ceased. She looks like she may have fallen asleep. I switch the lamp off, and turn to leave, and I hear her mumble something as I take my leave.

"What was that, Ms. Steele? Did you need something?"

"Why can't he love me back?" She murmurs into the pillow.

I don't know what to say, and I know that she won't remember this in the morning anyways, so I turn back around and leave. Softly closing the door behind me.

I quickly send a text to Christian, letting him know that Ana has made it home safely, neglecting to mention the details of what happened at the bar, for now. I know that I'll be held accountable for that later, but there's no reason to go into that tonight. It's late, and if he knows the full truth of what happened right now, he'll storm home and demand that Ana explain her actions to him immediately. She can't handle that right now. She needs to rest.

Tomorrow we'll both be held accountable for our actions, but for now, we'll let sleeping girls lie.


	2. Chapter 2

"What the fuck were you thinking? I can't even begin to believe that you would allow Ana to just disappear into some dive and drink herself stupid!" The yelling has been non-stop affair for three-quarters of an hour now. I would admire Christian's stamina, and the fact that he hasn't yet gone completely hoarse, were the tirade not directed towards me.

"I'm sorry, sir. I knew that you wouldn't want her to go to the bar, but my job is to protect, not control." _Not like you._ I left that part silent, but the implication hung heavy in the air.

Christian narrowed his eyes at me. "True, I should have been more explicit in my directions, and told you to bring her straight to Escala, no stops, but I thought that anyone with an ounce of common sense would assume that was what I wanted."

"Again, I'm sorry that you're dissatisfied, sir." I've apologized so many times that the words have lost all meaning to me. We've talked ourselves in so many circles that my head won't stop spinning. All I want in the world is to head back to the bed that he dragged me out of. It was too much to hope that he'd let the matter rest until morning.

"Christian?" The sound is feeble and imploring. We both lift our gaze to the doorway, where Anna is leaning against the wall for support, her hand pressed against her head to fend off what was sure to be a killer of a headache.

"Anna, go back to bed. Taylor and I are almost finished here, and I will come join you shortly." His words come out like a barked command. He is clearly as angry with her as he is with me, I'm sure he'll punish her later, but her lashing will surely be of a different sort than the one I'm currently receiving.

"Christian." Her voice coming out a little stronger now, a demand for his attention, rather than a plea. "It wasn't Taylor's fault. He didn't have any choice. I decided to go to that bar, and he did try to stop me, but I was just too scared and confused. I couldn't think of anything other than escaping that for a little while. Taylor was just trying to keep me safe."

Christian glowers at us both in turn, then heaves a begrudging sigh, and turns to escort Anna back to bed. "It's all right Anna, we'll talk about this in the morning. It's been a long day, and I think we all just need a little rest."

* * *

The next morning, I wake earlier than usual. The clock on my nightstand read 7:00 in large, blood red numbers. Hastily, I scurry out of bed and throw on my typical uniform of black cargo pants and a black t-shirt. It wouldn't due to slack off on security now, when Christian was sure to still be livid with me.

As I run around and do my morning checks, ensuring that everything was secure, the enticing scents of bacon and coffee flood the house.

I can't help but allow myself to be lead to the kitchen by my nose. If nothing else, I desperately need the world's largest cup of coffee, to make up for my lost sleep.

I enter the kitchen, expecting to see Mrs. Jones puttering around, called in by Christian to help on her day off, after the disasters of last night. Instead, there's Anna, apparently none the worse for the wear, after her night of drinking, dancing along to her ipod as she flipped the bacon in the pan.

I clear my throat, just loud enough to announce my presence, but still she jumps. She spins around and wields the fork that she's holding like a weapon. I chuckle at her wide-eyed expression, as I lean against the counter. Now that I'm closer, I can see that she's wearing a long t-shirt, that barely reaches her thighs, and very likely nothing else.

"I'd like to be sedated, right now." I casually mention, smiling at her still shell-shocked expression.

"What?" She asks breathlessly, as she presses her hand to her still rapidly beating heart.

I make a vague gesture towards her top.

"24 hours to go, I wanna be sedated" I sing quietly.

"Oh, is that a Ramones song?" She asks, pointing to the metallic yellow lettering sprawled across her chest.

"Yeah, I just assumed that you were a fan, considering the shirt and all." The end of my sentence trails off uncertainly.

"Yeah, I'm not the fan. My step-dad, Ray, he got this for me when he went to a cover band show a few years ago. I've never listened to them much myself." She was smiling apologetically, as though her not having an intimate knowledge of 1970's punk bands would be offensive to me.

I let out a low chuckle at her stricken express.

"Out of the way, little lady, let me educate you on the golden age of rock."

Giving her a gentle shove away from the ipod dock, I fish mine out of my pocket and plug it it.

"Here you go, young one, experience music the way it once was," I introduce as the first few chords come over the speaker.

_Have I ever told you_

_How good it feels to hold you_

_It isn't easy to explain_

_And though I'm really tryin'_

_I think I may start cryin'_

_My heart can't wait another day_

She starts her swaying once again, as she gets into the music. She peels the bacon off from the pan and lies it on a plate next to her.

"Do you want some eggs, Taylor? It's the least I can do after what happened last night."

I'd hoped that she would forget the late night drama between her, Christian, and myself, but there was no escaping it, it seemed.

"Last night was my fault, Ms. Steele. I should have escorted you directly to Escala, and I did not. Anything that you overheard Christian telling me, last night, was not a reflection on your actions, but on mine." I state firmly. I don't want her to feel guilty over any punishment that Christian might give me.

Her brow furrowed quizzically. "What are you talking about?" She asks. "I didn't know Christian spoke to you last night."

"Yes, we had a discussion about your safety, after he returned home and you came out during it. I assumed that was the unpleasantness you were referring to… What were you talking about?"

Her face flushed red as she shuffled her feet, turning from the stove.

"I was talking about the elevator."

I felt my heart freeze in my chest. Of all the things I thought she would remember from last night, the incident in the elevator was the last thought on my mind. She was smashed, and half-unconscious at that point, and I thought there was no way she would recall that portion of the night.

_When you kiss me I just gotta_

_Kiss me I just gotta_

_Kiss me I just gotta say :_

_Baby, I love you_

_Come on baby_

_Baby, I love you_

_Baby I love, I love only you_

The Ramones droned on in the background as I struggled to fill the now awkward silence. I struggled through my shell-shock, trying to think of anything I could say to ease the tension rapidly building in the room.

She whirls back around to face the stove, as the bacon starts sizzling and spitting at an alarming rate.

"The elevator?" The only stupid thing I can think to say.

She stills for a moment, waiting for me to continue, when words fail me, she continues tending the food.

_I can't live without you_

_I love everything about you_

_I can't help it if I feel this way_

I clear my throat again. "I don't know what you're talking about."

Her shoulders lower as she visibly relaxes. "So I didn't force myself on you in the elevator last night?"

I force a chuckle. "No, Miss."

All of the stress that she was wearing wiped away at that moment, and for a second, she looks almost as young as she actually is. "Oh, thank God, it was a dream. I can't _imagine _what Christian would have said."

_Oh I'm so glad I found you_

_I want my arms around you_

_I love to hear you call my name_

_Oh tell me that you feel_

_Tell me that you feel_

_Tell me that you feel the same_

"Can't imagine what Christian would have said about what?" Speak of the devil and the devil will appear.

"If she told you she were listening to the Ramones." I lie smoothly. I make a weak gesture at the ipod dock.

"The Ramones! Say it isn't so, sweet Anna!" He strides over to her and gives her a playful twirl. She lets out a delighted giggle, as she spin, her shirt lifting just high enough to expose the tops of her thighs, and the edges of her panties.

"I can't help it, Christian, Taylor has corrupted me. I have been irrevocably changed." She gives him a mock sorrowful gaze.

"It's alright, baby, I'll save you from Taylor's malicious taste in music." He wraps his arm around her shoulder and leads her back to the bedroom. I walk over to the stove, turn off the burner, and move the pan over. It wouldn't due to have have her come back out to burned breakfast.

_Baby, I love you_

_Come on baby_

_baby, I love you_

_Baby I love, I love only you_

I grab the ipod off from the dock and stride back into my suite. She's fine. I'm fine. Christian's fine. My job is done. Yet, for some reason, I can't help but feel like there is still work to be done. It sets my teeth on edge and prevents me from catching up on lost sleep.

"I wanna be sedated," I can't help but mumble, as I hear a distant thud and moan from across the apartment.

Rolling over for the the thousandth time, I bury my head under the pillow and try to fall back drown out the noises down the hall and go back to sleep.

* * *

Sorry about the long wait for the update, everyone. I Really didn't know where I wanted to take this story, and I didn't know if anyone would show real interest. However, now that I know that people actually want to see this finished, and I've thought a little more about what I want to do, I'm prepared to update a little more frequently. Thank you to all that reviewed, and a special thank you to the little nudge that helped get me back to this.


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